Lighting fixtures are commonly used to support and power light emitting devices, which include various types of light bulbs and light emitting diodes (LEDs). The lighting fixtures and/or the light emitting devices sometimes have a lens or other transparent cover that diffuses the light in multiple directions or focuses the light to a particular area. For example, a parking lot or street lamp may include a diffusion lens that causes the light to scatter and uniformly illuminate a wide area, where as a flash light can have a lens that focuses the light in a given direction.
Some areas require a particular quantity of light, usually measured in lumens, for safety, aesthetic or other reasons. For example, a parking deck may need all areas of the parking deck illuminated by a minimum quantity of lumens. As another example, a home owner may want to light the entire perimeter of his house with a certain amount of lumens. Because light fixtures are often rounded, some areas, such as those in nooks and corners, may require installation of additional light fixtures to assure the minimum amount of lumens illuminate the entire area.
In other illumination applications, such as in airplane cargo bays or crawl spaces under homes, traditional hand held lights are less than optimal. Because traditional hand held lights most brightly illuminate the area closest to the fixture, the user of the hand held light generally needs to carefully position himself and the light, and sometimes use a stand to direct the light fixture or a hook to hang the light fixture in a manner that provides enough light to see, while enabling the user move around without blocking the light or blinding the user.
In addition, most lighting fixtures also include wires that supply the light emitting devices power from a battery, solar panel and/or main power line. Lighting fixtures intended primarily for outdoor use generally place the wires inside the lighting fixture to protect the wires and other electrical components (except, of course, the solar panels) from the rain, wind and other natural elements.